Project and Program Sponsorship

Effective sponsorship is a key element in the successful delivery of projects and programs; the way a sponsor interacts with the project and other managers can create or destroy value. The Mosaic White Paper Project Sponsorship describes the role of the sponsor as the link between corporate direction and accountability and the management of programs and projects. The sponsor transmits management information and decisions downwards to the project and represents the project in senior management circles, communicating important information upwards.

The organisation appoints the project sponsor who will normally be a senior manager with a relevant area of responsibility that will be affected by the outcome of the project and should be involved with a project or program for far longer than the appointed managers.

Improving project and program sponsorship will directly contribute to improved outcomes for the organisation. Surveys have consistently shown a strong positive correlation between the effectiveness of sponsors and the success of projects and programs. However, sponsorship does not exist in a vacuum, the organisation needs to ensure that their sponsors have appropriate support in terms of training, clear authority, access to decision makers and adequate resources. Success is created by the partnering of the sponsors senior management skills with the project manager’s technical knowhow.

This is the focus of an executive half day workshop we are developing for release in early 2011. For more information see: http://www.mosaicprojects.com.au/Training-Sponsor.html